Editor’s Note: The results of this spring eDiscovery Business Confidence Survey present the unfortunate impact of COVID-19 on the business of eDiscovery. The results also paint a picture of the resilience and optimism of the people and providers of the eDiscovery ecosystem as shared by 172 legal, business, and technology professionals.
3. How do you think the business conditions will be in your segment six months from now? Subjective feeling of business performance when compared with business expectations.
4. How would you guess revenue in your segment of the eDiscovery ecosystem will be six months from now? Revenue is income generated from eDiscovery-related business activities.
5. How would you guess profits in your segment of the eDiscovery ecosystem will be six months from now? Profit is the amount of income remaining after accounting for all expenses, debts, additional revenue streams, and operating costs.
6. Of the six items presented below, what is the issue that you feel will most impact the business of eDiscovery over the next six months? Challenges that may directly impact the business performance of your organization.
7. In which geographical region do you primarily conduct eDiscovery-related business? The location from which you are basing your business assessments.
8. What are best describes your primary function in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery-related business?
9. What are best describes your level of support in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery-related business?
11. How would you characterize the trajectory of your organization’s Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) during the last quarter? n=150 Respondents
12. Which of the following statements best describes the distribution of your organization’s revenue across your customer base during the last quarter? n=150 Respondents
The eDiscovery Business Confidence Survey
The eDiscovery Business Confidence Survey is a non-scientific quarterly survey designed to provide insight into the business confidence level of individuals working in the eDiscovery ecosystem. The survey consists of nine core multiple-choice questions focused on factors related to the creation, delivery, and consumption of eDiscovery products and services. Additionally, the survey contains three optional questions focused on the business operational metrics of days sales outstanding (DSO), monthly recurring revenue (MRR), and revenue distribution across customer bases.
Initiated in early 2016, to date the survey has been administered eighteen times with 2,089 individual responses. The survey is open to legal, business, and information technology professionals operating in the eDiscovery ecosystem and individuals are invited to participate primarily via direct email invitations.Spring 2020 Survey Results
The spring 2020 survey response period was initiated on April 2, 2020, and continued until the registration of 172 responses (April 15, 2020). Thanks to the support of the leadership at both the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) and the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM), this quarter’s survey experienced strong response rates and presents a strong picture of the current confidence levels of participants and practitioners in the eDiscovery ecosystem.
While individual answers to the survey are confidential, the aggregate and unfiltered results are published to highlight the business confidence of participants regarding economic factors impacting the creation, delivery, and consumption of eDiscovery products and services during the spring of 2020.
2. How would you rate the current general business conditions for eDiscovery in your segment? Subjective feeling of business performance when compared with business expectations.
Business Confidence Questions (Required)
n = 172 Respondents 1. Which of the following segments best describes your business in eDiscovery? Part of the eDiscovery ecosystem where your organization resides.- Law Firm – 36.6% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Software or Services Provider – 29.1% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Consultancy – 16.9% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Corporation – 9.9% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Governmental Entity – 4.7% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Media/Research Organization – 1.7% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Other – 1.2% (Down from Winter 2020)
2. How would you rate the current general business conditions for eDiscovery in your segment? Subjective feeling of business performance when compared with business expectations.
- Good – 27.3% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Normal – 41.3% (No Change from Winter 2020)
- Bad – 31.4% (Up from Winter 2020)
3. How do you think the business conditions will be in your segment six months from now? Subjective feeling of business performance when compared with business expectations.
- Better – 37.8% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Same – 39.5% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Worse – 22.7% (Up from Winter 2020)
4. How would you guess revenue in your segment of the eDiscovery ecosystem will be six months from now? Revenue is income generated from eDiscovery-related business activities.
- Higher – 32.0% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Same – 33.7% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Lower – 34.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
5. How would you guess profits in your segment of the eDiscovery ecosystem will be six months from now? Profit is the amount of income remaining after accounting for all expenses, debts, additional revenue streams, and operating costs.
- Higher – 25.0% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Same – 39.5% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Lower – 35.5% (Up from Winter 2020)
6. Of the six items presented below, what is the issue that you feel will most impact the business of eDiscovery over the next six months? Challenges that may directly impact the business performance of your organization.
- Budgetary Constraints – 51.2% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Increasing Volumes of Data – 16.3% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Lack of Personnel – 11.0% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Data Security – 8.1% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Increasing Types of Data – 8.1% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Inadequate Technology – 5.2% (Down from Winter 2020)
7. In which geographical region do you primarily conduct eDiscovery-related business? The location from which you are basing your business assessments.
- North America (United States) – 89.0% (Up from Winter 2020)
- North America (Canada) – 4.7% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Europe (UK) – 2.9% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Europe (Non-UK) – 1.2% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Middle East/Africa – 1.2% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Asia/Asia Pacific – 0.6% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Central/South America – 0.6% (Down from Winter 2020)
8. What are best describes your primary function in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery-related business?
- Legal/Litigation Support – 76.2% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Business/Business Support (All Other Business Functions) – 17.4% (Down from Winter 2020)
- IT/Product Development – 6.4% (Down from Winter 2020)
9. What are best describes your level of support in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery-related business?
- Operational Management – 35.5% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Tactical Execution – 36.0% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Executive Leadership – 28.5% (Down from Winter 2020)
Business Metric Trajectory Questions (Optional)
10. How would you characterize the trajectory of your organization’s Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) during the last quarter? n=150 Respondents- Increasing – 19.3% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Unfluctuating – 22.0% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Decreasing – 15.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Do Not Know – 43.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
11. How would you characterize the trajectory of your organization’s Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) during the last quarter? n=150 Respondents
- Increasing – 15.3% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Unfluctuating – 25.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Decreasing – 26.0% (Up From Winter 2020)
- Do Not Know – 33.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
12. Which of the following statements best describes the distribution of your organization’s revenue across your customer base during the last quarter? n=150 Respondents
- Increasing – 16.0% (Down from Winter 2020)
- Unfluctuating – 30.0% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Decreasing – 18.7% (Up from Winter 2020)
- Do Not Know – 35.3% (Up from Winter 2020)
Past Survey Results
- Winter 2020 Survey (28 December 2019 – 11 January 2020)
- Fall 2019 Survey (29 September – 17 October 2019)
- Summer 2019 Survey (1 July – 17 July 2019)
- Spring 2019 Survey (1 April – 18 April 2019)
- Winter 2019 Survey (27 December 2018 – January 10, 2019)
- Fall 2018 Survey (14 October – 26 October 2018)
- Summer 2018 Survey (4 July – 24 July 2018)
- Spring 2018 Survey (7 April – 20 April 2018)
- Winter 2018 Survey (24 December 17 – 15 January 2018)
- Fall 2017 Survey (5 October – 17 October 2017)
- Summer 2017 Survey (6 July – 31 July 2017)
- Spring 2017 Survey (14 April – 1 May 2017)
- Winter 2017 Survey (20 January – 6 February 2017)
- Fall 2016 Survey (11 October – 1 December 2016)
- Summer 2016 Survey (1 August – 31 August 2016)
- Spring 2016 Survey (1 May – 31 May 2016)
- Winter 2016 Survey (15 February – 29 February 2016)
Based in Austin, Texas, Rob is a technology marketer who has held senior leadership positions with multiple top-tier data and legal technology providers and writes regularly on technology and marketing topics on the ComplexDiscovery(.com) blog.
Rob holds a Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS) designation from ACEDS, a Certificate of eDiscovery from the Electronic Discovery and Evidence Training Institute, and has held leadership roles (VP of Marketing, CMO, and COO) in legal technology organizations to include ONSITE3 (Acquired), Orange Legal Technologies (Acquired), CloudNine (Acquired LexisNexis eDiscovery Product Line), and currently with HaystackID (Acquired Envision Discovery, Inspired Review, and eTERA Consulting). Rob also has held leadership positions in technology-centric organizations to include Crossroads Systems (Director of Marketing – Storage Area Networking) and Compaq Computer Corporation (Product Marketing Manager – Deskpro and Prosignia Product Lines). A former US Army Captain and Helicopter Pilot (AH-1, OH-58, and UH-1), Rob is an alumnus and Distinguished Military Graduate of the University of Mississippi.
Rob holds a Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS) designation from ACEDS, a Certificate of eDiscovery from the Electronic Discovery and Evidence Training Institute, and has held leadership roles (VP of Marketing, CMO, and COO) in legal technology organizations to include ONSITE3 (Acquired), Orange Legal Technologies (Acquired), CloudNine (Acquired LexisNexis eDiscovery Product Line), and currently with HaystackID (Acquired Envision Discovery, Inspired Review, and eTERA Consulting). Rob also has held leadership positions in technology-centric organizations to include Crossroads Systems (Director of Marketing – Storage Area Networking) and Compaq Computer Corporation (Product Marketing Manager – Deskpro and Prosignia Product Lines). A former US Army Captain and Helicopter Pilot (AH-1, OH-58, and UH-1), Rob is an alumnus and Distinguished Military Graduate of the University of Mississippi.